Klinsmann's First Test: USA vs Mexico in Philadelphia

Jurgen Klinsmann makes his debut against Mexico on August 10. Photo: Reuters

New U.S. Men's national team head coach Jurgen Klinsmann will be tested immediately with his first match coming against main rival Mexico on August 10th in Philadelphia.

Mexico's 4-2 victory over the U.S. in the 2011 Gold Cup was the match that basically ended the term of Bob Bradley as head coach.

The former manager of Germany and Bayern Munich has plenty of work to do, particularly at forward where the U.S. is not particularly strong. If there's anyone that knows about the striker position it's Klinsmann, who was a star for Germany, having scored 47 goals in 108 caps.

The match against Mexico might be a chance for Klinsmann to experiment, even though it's against the Yanks' main rival.

Edgar Castillo, who has been under-used as a potential left back will be on the roster facing the country he once played for. Left back is a major concern for the U.S., and Klinsmann is right for allowing Castillo to compete for the job.

Another interesting addition is Ricardo Clark. The defensive midfielder has been very strong at times, and might be a good player to perhaps move to central defender. Clark has battled injuries, but at age 28 the Eintracht Frankfurt midfielder has something left.

However, the most interesting player on the roster is the return of DaMarcus Beasley. Once considered the future star of the U.S. team, Beasley has had injuries, and when healthy often fell short of expectations.

Mexico has one of their strongest teams in quite some time. They will be playing without Javier "El Chicharito" Hernandez, but El Tri will not be a pushover. This is a tough-minded squad with a great deal of depth.

With a squad lacking Clint Dempsey, Stuart Holden, and Jozy Altidore, the match in Philadelphia poses some obstacles for Klinsmann. It might look bad if he suffers the same fate against Mexico in his debut as Bradley did in his last game as coach.